Thursday, August 05, 2010

Proposition 8: A Small Step or a Giant Leap?

Finally, a step toward equality; an assurance that gay and lesbian couples have the same right to love one another regardless of gender. U.S. District Judge Vaughn Walker ruled that California’s Proposition 8 ballot, banning same sex marriage was considered unconstitutional. This is a huge step for all gays and lesbians who want to get married. My wife and I have always called our union, “the family unit”---even though we don’t have children. Your partner, spouse, significant other is your family. How degrading it is when a hospital won’t let you see your “family unit”, calling you “just a friend”. Things can change very rapidly once your loved one is either sick, or God forbid, deceased. Who takes charge? Who makes all the decisions? The immediate family. Of course, your immediate family feels they have more of a right due to the length of history with your partner, however, for a family member to take away the right of someone’s spouse - someone’s “family unit” is despicable in my personal opinion. I speak of those who do not give into consideration the thought and desire of the patient’s partner to be part of the decision making. It is just the same as if it were a straight husband and wife.

Now on a personal note, I don’t need a paper saying that my partner and I are married. We sought out other options as well, such as power of attorney papers and optional health benefits. We were legally married in Provincetown, MA on October 11, 2008. We live in New York, so when we returned, it is still recognized, but not in the same way it is with heterosexual marriages. We are more penalized and lacking in certain equal rights. If it weren’t for religious zealots making it so hard for gays and lesbians to be married, we’d all be seen as equals. With some Christians saying that we are all abominations to God, it goes to show that not every scripture in the Bible condemns it. Also, these same Christians are enjoying shrimp cocktails, while that’s considered to be one of the crustaceans of the sea. Beards are shaved and yet, homosexuality is still sin?

"Thou shalt not lie with mankind, as with womankind: it is abomination" (Leviticus 18:22). "If a man also lie with mankind, as he lieth with a woman, both of them have committed an abomination: they shall surely be put to death; their blood shall be upon them." (Leviticus 20:13)

Look at Galatians chapter two verses 17 through 21:

"But what if we seek to be made right with God through faith in Christ and then find out that we are still sinners? Has Christ led us into sin? Of course not! Rather, I make myself guilty if I rebuild the old system I already tore down. For when I tried to keep the law, I realized I could never earn God’s approval. So I died to the law so that I might live for God. I have been crucified with Christ. I myself no longer live, but Christ lives in me. So I live my life in this earthly body by trusting in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me. I am not one for those who treats the grace of God as meaningless. For if we could be saved by keeping the law, then there was no need for Christ to die."

That one sentence says it all: {“For if we could be saved by keeping the law, then there was no need for Christ to die.”}

There are many passages in the Bible that state otherwise. Instilling laws, such as certain “sins” and “abominations” were all used to keep society in order in the past. Procreation was seen for only a man and a woman. But I wonder, what if the woman isn't able to get pregnant or the man has a low sperm count? Does this mean they need to divorce? Are they considered an abomination if they have sex without the notion of procreating? The only answer you will receive from a Christian fundamentalist is, “It’s not natural for two women or two men to have sex!” And that’s it. End of story. They don’t rationalize their arguments, nor do they go by what the Bible really tells us. “To love one another and to love God with all your heart.” What about being judgmental? Isn’t God the only judge? The bottom line is: banning same sex marriage is discrimination no matter how much you look at it. If the law says that beating someone up because they are gay is considered a “hate crime”, then why aren’t they instilling a law that gives us complete equality throughout the whole United States? All these so called “Christians” can think of is sex. And what I mean by that is, they cannot talk about same sex unions without the talking about the sexual aspects of it. They are confusing our love with promiscuous and reckless sex. We are not all perverts. What about heterosexual couples who have premarital sex? It’s going to be a long road until we are all considered equal in the United States, but it’s worth the fight. Remember, years ago blacks couldn’t marry whites. They considered that to be “unnatural” too. We all have the right to love whoever we want to.

About Me

Debra Pasquella is the author of A Prayer Away From Healing, freelance blogger & creator of Gays & Lesbians of Faith. Content is sometimes opinionated, controversial, offensive or inspiring. That’s all up to you. An open mind is required. Ask your doctor if this blog’s right for you.